|
rodsullivan.org
SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
January 27, 2013
Sullivan’s Salvos 1/29/13
In this edition:
*Senator Harkin
*Federation of Labor Awards
*More On Schools
*Democratic Party Convention
*Running For Office
*Free Tax Help
*Did You Know?
*Senator Harkin
A political bomb went off in Iowa this weekend when longtime Senator Tom Harkin announced he would not seek reelection in 2014.
I love politics, and there is much to discuss re: the fallout from this announcement. But before we go there…
THANK YOU, Tom Harkin! You have represented Iowa long and well! Enjoy your retirement. And until then, keep givin’ ‘em Hell!
*Federation of Labor Awards
The Iowa City Federation of Labor held its annual Chili Supper on Thursday, January 17. Part of the agenda was the presentation of some well-deserved awards.
My good friend and neighbor Dan Daly was honored with the Jean Martin Community Services Award. Dan is a familiar face and lends a helping hand at Table to Table, the IC Farmers’ Market, Saint Pat’s, and AFSCME, among many other charitable endeavors. Dan was a friend of Jean Martin’s, and honors her legacy every day with his social justice work. Congrats, my friend!
Immigrant Voices/the Worker’s Center won the Organization of the Year. The folks who accepted the award on behalf of this group told some very inspiring stories! I urge everyone to learn more about this fledgling organization.
Finally, the Lifetime Achievement Award went to my buddy Tom Jacobs. There simply could not be a better honoree. Tom was part of the AFSCME group that first earned the right to bargain collectively in 1975. Since that time, Tom has never wavered in his support for working people. He has also documented the history of the labor movement through photos, buttons and press clippings. You could look long and hard and never find a more honest, genuine, caring individual. He really and truly is one of my heroes. Congrats, Tom, and thanks for all the fish!
Congrats to the Iowa City Federation of Labor and President Patrick Hughes on yet another great event!
*More on Schools
The conversation over the ICCSD Diversity Policy has, at times been very disheartening. There are people of good faith on both sides of the issue. There are also some really sad motives on both sides.
Those kids you are afraid of? Those are MY kids. African American, from the foster care system.
People on both sides of the river are making it abundantly clear that they would rather have their kids go to school with someone else. That is too bad. While my kids are far from perfect, they have contributed to their schools.
I am glad two of my three kids have already left the pettiness of the ICCSD behind, and graduated to the world of adult racism.
*Democratic Party Convention
The Johnson County Democratic Party is holding a Convention to pick the Democratic candidate for the Johnson County Board of Supervisors.
The Convention is Thursday, January 31st at 7pm at Northwest Junior High in Coralville. Only Democrats who were elected as delegates or alternates at the 2012 County Convention are eligible to be seated, though the Convention itself has some ability to alter those rules. Selecting the candidate is the only order of business that evening.
The winning candidate will appear as the only Democrat on the ballot for the March 5 Supervisor election. I have yet to hear anything on a GOP convention; I’ll pass it along when I do.
*Running For Office
I often hear from folks who want to run for office. 99% of the time, by the time they have spoken to me, it is way too late!
Do you want to run for office? Do you have a candidate you’d like to support? You are in time if you are looking at the September School Board races or November City Council races. But just barely!
Planning and organizing a campaign takes time. Building name recognition takes time. You have to plan in order to succeed.
Interested? Give me a call. But do it sooner rather than later!
*Free Tax Help!
One of my proudest accomplishments as a Supervisor has been instituting the Free Tax Help clinics in Johnson County. These have been tremendously successful, bringing over $1 million annually into the local economy.
This service is available for free to taxpayers earning less than $50,000 a year. The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program trains University of Iowa students and AARP volunteers to provide FREE Income Tax Preparation Services to qualifying workers. Additionally, the University of Iowa student volunteers have completed a semester long tax preparation course.
There are five (5) locations throughout Johnson County that provide FREE Tax Preparation Services – Garner Elementary in North Liberty, Northwest Junior High in Coralville, Southeast Junior High in Iowa City, the Iowa City Public Library, and the Iowa City/Johnson County Senior Center. Schedules are available on the website. Spanish translators are available at the 4 University of Iowa VITA locations.
Johnson County is pleased to partner with the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business, Johnson County AARP, Iowa City Public Library, Iowa City Community School District, Iowa City Housing Authority, and United Way of Johnson County. Financial support is provided by ISED Ventures, University of Iowa Community Credit Union, United Way of Johnson County, and Veridian Credit Union.
For much more information, please visit the County web page: http://www.johnson-county.com/dept_soc_ser.aspx?id=275
*DID YOU KNOW? In 1830, the average adult American drank 88 bottles per year – one every 4-5 days!
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
www.johnson-county.com.
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise mentioned.
If you do NOT want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type "unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
January 18, 2013
Sullivan’s Salvos 1/22/13
In this edition:
*MLK
*Diversity Policy – Blame To Go Around!
*Revenue Purpose Statement
*Did You Know?
*MLK
Things rarely appear twice in Salvos. I happen to believe the MLK Holiday is important enough to be written about on consecutive weeks.
We often hear about Christians who feel that Christmas has lost its meaning, union members who feel that way about Labor Day, and Veterans who feel the same about Veteran’s Day. I fear that this could be happening to MLK Day as well.
If you get this in time, please look into participating in some of the many events designed to honor MLK. Enjoy the day off, if you get it – but please remember what we are celebrating.
*Diversity Policy – Blame To Go Around!
The top news story in Johnson County continues to be the Diversity Policy recently proposed by the ICCSD Board of Directors.
It is ironic that this issue is being discussed at the same time as the MLK holiday. For all his action on issues of race, it was his advocacy for the poor that scared the powers that be. How would MLK view our discussions?
Much has been reported about the ideas of school diversity and school capacity. Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL) statistics can be quoted by parents throughout the District. Most people agree that there are issues to be addressed. The ICCSD Board has come under heat from all directions.
The Iowa City Council has expressed support for the proposed policy; Coralville and North Liberty are opposed. Letters have already appeared in the paper. I find it ironic that ANY of these cities feels the need to weigh in. They CREATED this problem! Let’s have a little history lesson:
I have been a critic of our local zoning decisions for over 20 years. During that time, none of these cities have adequately addressed the issue of middle-income housing, and the issue of low-income housing is not even open to discussion!
Iowa City Councilor Jim Throgmorton previously served on the Council – back in 1994. Way back then, Throgmorton was arguing for inclusionary zoning.
Inclusionary zoning is simple – it requires every new subdivision to have a small percentage of homes that are priced for middle and/or low-income people. So, for example, a city might say that for every development of two units or more, at least 10% must be moderately priced and 10% must be available for low-income people. So if a developer put in a 20 home subdivision, 2 houses would need to be targeted at moderate incomes, 2 at low incomes. You could do something similar with apartment buildings - if a developer put up two 12-unit apartment buildings, 3 units would need to be moderately priced, while 3 would need to be lower income.
Developers hate this. Land is expensive, and they make a lot more from their investment if they build more expensive housing. They have been asked repeatedly over 20 years to do something voluntarily, and they have failed MISERABLY!
The private sector is clearly not the answer here. Their financial incentives are too great. So governments (aka the cities) NEED to step up. But the cities have shirked this duty for over 20 years; I see no reason to believe that they will suddenly change now.
In Iowa City, Councilors gave in to the wishes of developers and decided to hope that they would do things voluntarily. Meanwhile, a huge percentage of the low and moderate-income housing sits in a single area of town. It was becoming an issue in ’94 when Jim was first elected; now it is a critical problem.
Iowa City does point out – and it is true – that any housing policy like inclusionary zoning should ideally be implemented in Coralville and North Liberty, too. (While I agree, this also gives them a convenient excuse for failing to act.)
Coralville will not even participate in discussions on low-income housing. They have twice thwarted efforts by the MPO to bring the subject up. They have also systematically eliminated what low income housing did exist there. I vividly recall a discussion I had with a former Coralville Councilor around this issue. I noted that there were some new retail jobs in Coralville as a result of the then-new mall. What was Coralville going to do about housing those folks? “That’s what North Liberty is for,” he told me. I have seen no signs that anything has changed since then.
In addition, all the TIFs in Coralville have hurt the ICCSD financially. The state backfills some of the money Coralville diverts, but only about 50%. The ICCSD is forced to raise taxes in an attempt to recover the rest. So ICCSD taxpayers subsidize Coralville development – and money that could go toward fixing up our schools funds a brewery and a clothing store.
North Liberty actually does have a considerable amount of moderately priced housing as a percentage of total units. But as you can tell from Council discussions over the past few years, North Liberty has no interest in being “the place you go for cheap housing.” They are willing to have the conversation, but they are not willing to shoulder more than their share.
I just don’t want to hear anyone from any city council complain about the ICCSD. Because I have not seen any city councilors SINCE Throgmorton 19 years ago who have fought for more low-income housing in more places. Elected officials at the city level simply fail to represent the poor. You may not like what the School Board is doing, but at least they are doing something.
So. Here we are. Most parents in the ICCSD recognize the problems inherent with two elementary schools at 5% FRL while two different elementary schools hover around 80% FRL. Our community should not be so divided between rich and poor.
Politics creates strange bedfellows. People who have legitimate concerns over the policy team up with people who hate and fear the poor and people of color. People who really want to increase the opportunities for the poorest kids in the District team up with people who want others to take the poor and people of color off their hands.
We look to the ICCSD Board to fix things. The problem is, they did not create these problems, and they are limited in their ability to fix them.
The public needs to own this. Parents – you elected the city councils that created the housing policies of the past two decades. You never held them accountable on this important issue. Now the chickens have come home to roost. If I were Throgmorton, I’d have a very difficult time not saying, “I told you so.”
I sincerely hope that the parents who are so involved in the discussions at the ICCSD will begin to get involved in local zoning matters. Until the public begins to care about something beyond the most basic of NIMBY concerns, things will not get better. They are going to get worse. And no school board, no matter how well intentioned, will be able to clean up your mess.
*Revenue Purpose Statement
Somewhat overshadowed in the whole discussion of the Diversity Policy is the February 5th vote on the Revenue Purpose Statement (RPS).
I support the RPS, and you should, too. The ICCSD is woefully behind in terms of facilities. We have new facilities that need to be constructed, and older buildings that need work. The RPS is the quickest and most cost-effective way to address these needs.
Understand – this does NOT increase taxes. It only allows the ICCSD to bond against future revenues. They are not bonding ALL the future revenues; it will be about half at most. The payback is automatic.
Some folks say they do not trust this School Board. So what? So kids should suffer in inadequate buildings? You’ll have plenty of opportunities to replace Board members with whom you disagree. You can even do so before virtually any building project could get started.
You root for the east side only? Stupid attitude, but kids on the east side need you to vote for this! You root for the west side only? Stupid attitude, but kids on the west side need you to vote for this!
Interest rates will never be lower. Needs will only grow greater. This opportunity is too good to pass up. Vote yes on the RPS.
*DID YOU KNOW? The compound Polonium is so deadly, it would only take one millionth of a gram to kill the average person.
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
www.johnson-county.com.
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise mentioned.
If you do NOT want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type "unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
January 12, 2013
Sullivan’s Salvos 1/15/13
In this edition:
*MLK
*Free Tax Help!
*Process For Supervisor Vacancy
*Did You Know?
*MLK
The federal holiday honoring the birthday of the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior is Monday, January 21, 2013.
The University of Iowa is once again sponsoring several events in honor of MLK. Also known as Human Rights Week, the list of events (below) is impressive:
*Interfaith Worship Service, Honoring the Legacy of MLK: Sunday, 1/20, 7:00 pm at First Mennonite Church in Iowa City.
*Unity March: Monday, 1/21, 3:30 - 4:00 pm at Old Capitol Museum.
*"Time to Remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr." Monday, 1/21 at Old Capitol Museum. Reception to follow in Museum Lobby.
*Rights-A-Palooza: Wednesday, 1/23, 11:30 - 1:30 pm at IMU Main Lounge. Be a part of this "do-fair" - do (learn) a cultural dance, do (play) games, do (make) a craft. Grab an ice-cream sundae, listen to the jazz trio and do!
*2013 UI Health Care MLK Lecture: Isabel Wilkerson: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, and the author of The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration. Wednesday, 1/23 from 12:00 - 1:00 pm; Reception & Book Signing to follow 1:00 - 1:30 at Sahai Auditorium, Medical Education and Research Facility (MERF).
*"Community of Color": Thursday, 1/24, 4:00 - 6:00 pm at Van Oel Multipurpose Room, Currier Hall. Contact: Center for Diversity and Enrichment 335-3555, cde@uiowa.edu; RSVP by January 21.
*"The Mountaintop," a play by Katori Hall presented by Theatre Arts/Darwin Turner Action Theatre and directed by Professor Tlaloc Rivas of the Department of Theatre Arts. This award winning play is about an imagined conversation between King and a hotel maid on his last night alive in the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, just after he gave his famed "Mountaintop" speech and before he got shot the next morning. Saturday, 1/26 7:00 pm at EC Mabie Theater.
As I noted, this list is impressive – and I didn’t include everything! It makes me proud to see my alma mater recognize the man and recognize the need for the holiday.
Unfortunately, the UI is virtually alone in our community when it comes to recognizing this day. My family and I attend the Interfaith Service every year. It SHOULD be packed. It is not. What’s more, you rarely ever see elected/appointed officials at the event. I wonder what kind of impact it would have to see the Superintendent of Schools or Chief of Police at the event?
We have a lot of work to do around issues of race in Johnson County. Let’s make MLK Day 2013 the start of a year of action!
*Free Tax Help!
One of my proudest accomplishments as a Supervisor has been instituting the Free Tax Help clinics in Johnson County. These have been tremendously successful, bringing over $1 million annually into the local economy.
This service is available for free to taxpayers earning less than $50,000 a year. The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program trains University of Iowa students and AARP volunteers to provide FREE Income Tax Preparation Services to qualifying workers. Additionally, the University of Iowa student volunteers have completed a semester long tax preparation course.
There are five (5) locations throughout Johnson County that provide FREE Tax Preparation Services – Garner Elementary in North Liberty, Northwest Junior High in Coralville, Southeast Junior High in Iowa City, the Iowa City Public Library, and the Iowa City/Johnson County Senior Center. Schedules are available on the website. Spanish translators are available at the 4 University of Iowa VITA locations.
Johnson County is pleased to partner with the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business, Johnson County AARP, Iowa City Public Library, Iowa City Community School District, Iowa City Housing Authority, and United Way of Johnson County. Financial support is provided by ISED Ventures, University of Iowa Community Credit Union, United Way of Johnson County, and Veridian Credit Union.
For much more information, please visit the County web page: http://www.johnson-county.com/dept_soc_ser.aspx?id=275
*Process For Supervisor Vacancy
As you know, Sally Stutsman was elected to the Iowa Legislature, meaning she had to step down as a County Supervisor. Many folks have inquired what happens next. I’ll explain!
The resignation of a Supervisor triggers the meeting of a committee consisting of the Treasurer, Recorder, and Auditor. Sally submitted her resignation effective January 2nd, and the committee met on the 8th.
The committee had two options: appoint someone to fill the remainder of the term, or call for an election. The committee unanimously chose to go to election.
You may recall that there was an appointment AND an election last time there was an opening on the Board. In that case, the opening was created by the death of Supervisor Larry Meyers. Current Supervisor Janelle Rettig was already running for a spot, as the election was much closer then than now. The committee appointed Rettig, but a petition drive resulted in enough signatures to force a special election. Rettig defeated Republican nominee Lori Cardella in that special election, then ran unopposed with Stutsman in the general election.
I think it is safe to say that the experience they had in 2010 influenced the committee. They were all reluctant to spend the money – a special election is about $65,000. But there were good reasons for going to a vote. First, this is a full two years. The public expects to weigh in when someone represents them for that long. Secondly, if folks were going to force an election for a 10-month opening, they were likely to force one for a two-year long opening. So the committee opted to go straight to a special election.
(On a side note – during the Democratic primary race, a number of his opponents claimed that Auditor Travis Weipert was somehow involved in a convoluted conspiracy to appoint the next Supervisor. Clearly that was untrue, as Weipert voted for an election. Let’s see if any apologies are forthcoming.)
The election will be held Tuesday, March 5. (There will be time for some limited early voting opportunities.) This means that the Republican and Democratic Parties will hold conventions in late January/early February to choose their candidates. Other individuals can be nominated by petition, and appear on the ballot without a “D” or “R” behind their names.
I have heard of a handful of Democrats interested in the position; those folks will make their case at the Democratic Party Convention. I have yet to hear about any interested Republicans.
If you are into local politics, the fun has only just begun!
*DID YOU KNOW? MLK was only 39 years old when he was assassinated in 1969.
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
www.johnson-county.com.
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise mentioned.
If you do NOT want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type "unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
January 4, 2013
Sullivan’s Salvos 1/8/13
In this edition:
*Happy Birthday Mom!
*Moms
*Justice Center Update
*Reception for Sally Stutsman
*Bowl For Kids’ Sake
*Did You Know?
*Happy Birthday Mom!
Happy Birthday to my Mom, Susan Sullivan Smith! I love you!
*Moms
Speaking of moms, this topic has come up a great deal in some of my recent conversations. I am amazed by the amount of competition and lack of solidarity among mothers.
Should a woman stay at home with her child? Should she put the child in daycare and go to work? Everybody seems to have an opinion. As a mother, it seems you cannot escape the criticism no matter which route you choose.
This issue came up during the Presidential campaign, and it touched a nerve with me. When I was working in the human services field, I frequently worked with young mothers. Because they were poor, staying home with their babies was never an option. I knew of several situations where it would have made more sense for the new mother to stay home with her baby for six months rather than put the child in daycare, then go to work in fast food at $7.25/hour. (Actually, it was $3.35 back then!) It would have been cheaper for the government and better for all involved to just offer her some support to stay home with the baby for a while. The “choice” to stay home is a choice only afforded to people of means.
I know poor women who stay home with kids. I know wealthy women who stay home with kids. I know all sorts of mothers who work outside of the home. What do they all have in common? Two things. One, they are doing what they think is best for their kid(s). Two, they are being criticized for it by someone.
Our society, workplaces, governments, etc. should be more sensitive to the needs of mothers, but they are not. By criticizing each other, competing with each other, and taking pleasure in each other’s pain, mothers are allowing men to divide and conquer.
Being a mother is THE most important job. There are many different ways to do it well. Let’s all work to honor and respect the mothers we know, whatever choices they make.
*Justice Center Update
As you know, the proposed Justice Center earned over 56% of the vote in November, but that was not enough to meet the required 60% threshold.
Board members have received lots of feedback since the vote. As you might imagine, much of it is contradictory. So we have attempted to focus on common themes when and where possible, and we have attempted to address some of the more prevalent concerns we have heard from the public.
The Board recently came to agreement on a revised plan for addressing the needs in the courthouse and jail. As you might imagine, several things remain roughly the same. After all, it was designed to meet the needs the first time. Plus a sizeable majority of the voters agreed with the plan.
Some of the larger changes:
1. Jail beds are being cut from 243 to 195.
2. Two courtrooms are being eliminated.
3. The exterior will consist of more limestone and less glass.
4. $1.4 million more will come from the county’s general fund.
5. The County will lead some discussions on addressing disproportionate minority contact in the criminal justice system, with more specifics to come.
These proposed changes add up to about $3.5 million in projected savings, lowering the total cost of the plan by about 8%.
Technically, the Board has not voted on any of this, though there was unanimous agreement in more than one informal meeting. The Board just met with the Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee and interested members of the public in order to seek feedback. The plan will likely be tweaked, but approved quite soon.
The tentative plan is to put this before the voters on May 7, 2013. That date is the soonest we could come back before the voters, and hits before UI students leave for the summer. In addition, we hope that the educational efforts that have occurred to date will still have residual effects in May.
As always, your thoughts are welcome!
*Reception for Sally Stutsman
There will be a reception on Thursday, January 10th from 3-5 pm in Room 203b at the Johnson County Health and Human Services Building honoring Supervisor Sally Stutsman for her 18 years of service.
I have made note of Sally’s many contributions to County government before, but they bear repeating. Sally deserves most of the credit for improving the County government we now have. Before Sally was elected, we had cronyism, sexism, secrecy, no plan for investing, a lack of transparency, and a lack of written policies. Over many objections, Sally led Johnson County to a government of laws rather than a government of personalities. Sally has never gotten the thanks she ought to for her work in those trying times. Sally will do government right for the people of HD77.
*Bowl For Kids’ Sake
Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Johnson County is holding its 39th annual Bowl For Kids’ Sake event February 23 and 24 at Colonial Lanes.
This is by far the biggest fundraiser for BBBS each year, with all the money staying local to help match kids in need with caring adult mentors. The need is great…over 60 children are currently waiting to be matched!
The Sullivan for Supervisor Team will be bowling once again this year. If you don’t have a team of your own, you can certainly sponsor us! To donate, just go to: https://sites.google.com/site/bbbsjohnsonco/
*DID YOU KNOW? Stutsman’s 18 years of service on the Johnson County Board of Supervisors are the most since at least 1946.
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
www.johnson-county.com.
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise mentioned.
If you do NOT want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type "unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
|
|
